Improvement in shaft-couplings



NPETERS, PHDTU-LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON D C i FREEDOMG; snurken, :or BATTLE ennuie, MICHIGAN.

f .Ltters retentit. 1112,64; daad March n., 1871.

`lllli-PROVEMjEN'l' lN SHAFT-COUPLINGS.

` Thechedule referred toin these. Letters Patent-.and making part of the same.

I, FRnnDoM G.. SHEPARD, of i the city of Battle Ureek,`in the county of Calhoun and State'of Michigan, have invented certainlmprovements in Shaft- Oouplings, of which thefollowing is a specification.'

These improvements are intended to apply more i especiallyto that class of shaft-couplings which permits the Working of shafts oivtumbling--rodsvwhen out of alignment with each other, and which' is mainly used to connect portable machines` with their powers,and

`to transmit motion and power from theone to the other."

The first part of my invention relates to the combination.withtheconpling-Iing (to which the coupling-forks are usually pivoted) of an 'exterior guard-ring, for thel "purpose of covering the ends `of the coupling-pins and securing the pins in plage without impairng the strength of the inner coupling-ring., 'and to obviate the necessity of external projections, such as bolt-heads,

points, or n nts on the periphery of the coupling, which projections are very dangeioiisfroni their tendency to catch into any article of clothing that may come into momentary contact.v i e The second part of my invention relates to a recess- `ing, slotting, and keyingfarrangement, in which the coupling-pins are made the solebasis of attachment to keep the guard-ring in place, my object beingto preserve the main coupling-ring intact, and at 4the same `.time furnish a ready means of coupling and uncoupling the detachable shafts by' a simple hand manipulation, and without detaching `the guard-ring, as will hereinafter inorelfullyappea 4. p Explanation of the Accompanying Drawing.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a paii ofcouplings embodying my invention, and showing the guard-ring fas it appears after being nnkeyed, revolved, and drawn back so as to uncover one of thecouplingpins priorto 1 uncoupling the shaft. A i

p Figures 2 and Sare exterior end views of the respective couplings shown in ig. 1.

AandB constitute a pair-of ordinary forked conp` jlings, the forks being shownrespectively at c a and b b.

The bodies of these couplings are cored out, as may *be seen at as, to receive the ends of the shafts to be `rivetedon or form slip sockets, or otherwise connected with the coupling iu any of the well-known and approved ways. r f i Y C is the coupling-ring, inside of which the forks play on the coupling-pinspp, which pass through 'said forks and ring, and I usually cast reinforces d d opposite the pin-bearings to save metal.

E is` the guard-ring, made smooth on the'periphery,

and east usually a littleiwider than the coupling-ring,

and of suoli relative radius `as to slip freely overit.

i rllhe two rings may be connected together by ushheaded tap-bolts, or any other-of the Well-known 4contrivances for such purposes; but in that case the ends of the' coupling-pins Vmay be made flush with the ring O, and the guard-ring have a snugger iit |out the rcadiest and .best mode is to lock the outer ring with the coupling-pins in the manner I will now proceed to describe, reference being had to the drawing, in

which g. Zrepres'ents the' edges of the two rings as facing coupling B, and Iig. 3, the opposite edges facing i thecoupling A.

'The guard-ring E is formed with two'inside crossgrooves, to permit the passage of theprojecting ends y of the coupling-pin p', and also tdserve as a key-way` -s shown at'cfand with two recesses, t c, sunk to a proper depth, vto receive theprojecting ends of the 'conplingpin jp, as seen in g. 3. a

`.lwo shorter recesses, 7' j, are also sunk from the opposite edgenext the grooves, to catch the ends of the pin p', as exhibited in iig. 2, when the guard-ring has been turned round a little in the "direction of the arrow.

The stops N N on the coupling-ring and the deep recesses n n in the guard-ring are simply for the purpose of preventing the guard from beirigdrawn b ack any further thanv is necessary to permit the couplingpin p to be taken ou-t, as clearly shown in iig. l. e

The forks of the coupling B being 'rst coupled to the ring O by the pin p', thering Eis slipped over'the ring G until arrested bythe stops Nin. The forks of the coupling A are new coupled to the ring C by inserting the pin p; the. ring Eis drawn back until the projecting ends of said pin enter the recesses c @,'and the ring being now revolved as far 'as the length ot the recesses permits in the direction of the arrow, the re- .,cesses jj on the opposite side have been moved over the projecting ends of the pimp', and the guard-ring is securely interlocked with thel ends of the couplingpins, so as to cover the pins and coiiline themhin place, while the covering-ring isitself secured against displacement.

A key,.,of leather or other material it for the purpose, inseited by the hand into one of the grooves c, makes every thing safe, such key being indicatedV hy 'the hatched border around c.

The linconpling is of course effected by reversed motions in reversed order; but when the coupling A and its shaft are detached, the pin 1) should be replaced in the ring G and cheering E intei'locked and keyed as before.v f

, My arrangement ofthe guard-ring renders the forked coupling peifectly safe for all kinds of portable and many kinds of stationary uses, where an exact alignment of the shafting cannot be maintained, and, being Claims.

I claim as mywinvention- 1. The combination of a separate smooth metal nasal guard-ring, E, with the ordinary coupling-ring C of a pair of forked sbaftfcouplings, when said guard-ring is so placed and attached as to cover the ends of the coupling-pins and secure them in place, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

2. In forked shaft-couplings, the arrangement and combinationv of the separategrooved and recessed guard-ring E, ordinary coupling-ring C, andproject- .ing coupling-pins p p', to the end that said pins and guard-ring may mutually secure andproteot each other, substantially as set forth.

FREEDOM G. SHEPARD.

Witnesses:

FRANK T. ROBERTS, GEO. W. HYATT. 

